Meet Miranda Cosgrove’s New Puppy Penny!

The “iCarly” alum, who put her career on hold to attend college at University of Southern California, received a very special Christmas gift this year: a new puppy. The 19-year-old introduced Penelope, who will go by the nickname Penny, to her Twitter followers over the weekend, posting a series of photos of the fluffy black and white canine.

"Most amazing surprise early Christmas gift #penny #inlove," the teen star tweeted along with a picture of the pint-size pup in her hand. Later, Cosgrove, who is recovering from ankle surgery, tweeted another picture of herself in her pajamas on the couch – with Penny looking quite comfortable on her lap.

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Cosgrove’s new addition fills a void in her life – and heart. In October, Cosgrove’s previous pooch, Pearl, passed away at the age of 14, leaving the actress/singer heartbroken. At the time, Cosgrove shared her loss with her Twitter followers, posting, "My dog, Pearl, passed away today. She was there on my first day of kindergarten and my first day of college. I'll love her forever." She later opened up about her canine companion to People, saying, "She was a part of our family, and because I was an only child, she was a really big part of my life. Every time I look back on a memory, she was there."

Now she will create happy new memories with Penny – as roommates in Cosgrove’s new home. Currently a freshman at USC, the former Nickelodeon star (iCarly aired its final episode in November) recently moved out of her childhood house and into her own digs in Los Angeles, which has taken a little getting used to. "It's definitely weird,” she told Parade of being on her own. “Growing up, my next door neighbor was my best friend and an only child too. But now she's a 30-minute drive! Moving almost seems as big if not bigger, as far as adjustment. [Before] I lived in the same house my whole life and I lived 20 minutes out of L.A. Now I live in L.A. It's nice to be able to have all of my friends over to go swimming and visit and stuff. It's different but it's nice."

And with the arrival of Penny, we suspect living on her own will be even nicer – with cuddle sessions galore!